


For You

by jenorama



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-22
Updated: 2019-12-22
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:21:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,229
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21908122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jenorama/pseuds/jenorama
Summary: It's Christmas Harry and Ginny are at different points in their lives, but they still have a knack for picking out gifts for each other.Written for Pottermum for the Harry and Ginny Discord's 2019 Incognito Elf fic exchange!
Relationships: Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley
Comments: 7
Kudos: 40





	For You

**Author's Note:**

  * For [pottermum](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pottermum/gifts).



Harry crouched in the dirty Edinburgh alleyway, doing his best to ignore the damp chill that seeped through his cloak. He managed his breathing to minimize any chance of the white plume of his exhalation giving him away as he waited. 

He glanced moodily at the end of the alley that led to the street. _What am I doing here? It’s bloody Christmas Eve and I’ve got places to be!_ He thought about the bottle of Chateauneuf still on his desk that he’d meant to give to Molly tonight and sighed. He’d planned it as sort of an apology for not being around as much lately; he’d been hearing from Ron that Molly was likely to go on the warpath if he didn’t make an appearance for Christmas Eve.

As usual, thoughts of Molly led to thoughts of her daughter and he recalled the small package he had waiting for Ginny in his desk drawer. A rush of anxiety filled him. _Will she like it? Is it too much?_ he wondered, shying away from another, more pressing thought: _Will it make her stay?_

As he fumed, he thought about his earlier conversation with his boss. “You’ll want to be thinking about your career in the department, Potter,” Head Auror Jackson said when Harry had balked at being sent up to Edinburgh that very night. “You have an impeccable record and …” 

He trailed off, looking straight across his desk at Harry sitting in the stiff, straight-backed chair. “So if I want to continue on my stellar trajectory in this department, I’ll be a good boy and forget about spending Christmas Eve with my loved ones and get my arse up to Edinburgh to snatch a man off the street.” Ignoring Jackson’s hardened expression, he nodded once and stood up. “Anything else?” he asked, not waiting for a response before exiting the Head Auror’s office.

Looking at his watch, he frowned at both the time and the cracked crystal. He hadn’t even realized that a curse had hit it and he felt both terrible that it had been damaged, but grateful that he hadn’t been hit himself. Ginny had noticed, of course, buttonholing him about it on Bonfire Night.

“What’s that? What happened?” she said, grabbing his wrist and pushing up the cuff of his jumper. 

“Oh, erm, it got a little bit cracked.” Harry looked down at the watch, trying not to notice how the light of the bonfire seemed to light Ginny’s hair from within. “Don’t tell your mum, all right?”

“Why don’t you just use Reparo?” She readied her wand and Harry moved his wrist.

“Won’t work. Curse damage, yeah?”

Ginny frowned. “Curse?” she asked, folding her arms. “What curse? What happened? When was this?”

Harry shrugged, words failing him as he tried to think of a story that wouldn’t alarm her more than she already was. “Just clumsy, I guess. I’m going to get it fixed. Just need the time to get it to a Muggle shop to replace the crystal.”

“Well, if they weren’t running you off of your feet, you would have done by now.” She looked down at it again, running her thumb over the damaged watch that had been his seventeenth birthday gift. “I won’t tell Mum, but it’s your own arse if she sees, all right?”

_My own arse indeed._ He glanced down at the watch, the dim light in the alleyway highlighting the crazy starburst cracks. He still wasn’t sure which curse had been the culprit and he supposed he should think himself lucky that he still had his hand. _Almost two months gone by and I still haven’t had the time. If Ron were still in …_ He shook his head, cutting off the train of thought. _Ron’s not your protector. He’s been looking for an out for a long time and you know it. He’s happier now with law school and Hermione. Not gonna lie and say I don’t miss him, though._

Feet prickling with numbness, he shifted position, holding in a groan at the pins and needles sensation of blood returning to his toes. He was starting to wonder if his quarry would ever show up when he heard voices at the mouth of the alley and he crouched back down, using the shadow cast by the dustbin as cover. _Two of them. Fuck._

“And so I said to her, who d’you think I am, Harry bleeding Potter? I don’t have that kind of cash, love,” the larger figure said, his voice loud and boorish. 

His companion was a woman, evidenced by her high-pitched giggle. “’Arry bleedin’ Potter! You’re much better looking. Always thought he was a bit weedy, meself.” 

_Weedy?_ Harry rolled his eyes as he readied his wand. _Get the woman first, then Langnecker._ He waited, muscles tensed, until they were two steps past the dustbin. Knees protesting the sudden movement, he stood and extended his wand, silently dropping the woman to the wet alley pavement. 

Startled, her companion spun around, catching sight of Harry next to the dustbin. “You!” he snarled, hand diving for his own wand.

“Yep. Me.” Harry Stunned Langnecker, paying no heed as the man went down to the pavement in a boneless heap. Squatting down, he checked the woman, reassured to find her pulse strong and steady. Reviving her, helped her sit up, noting the smell of alcohol on her breath. Her eyes fell on Langnecker’s inert form and she gasped, giving him the perfect opportunity to Obliviate her.

“Blimey, Miss, are yer all right?” Harry said, helping her stand as she recovered from the Memory Charm.

“Ow, me head,” she said, pressing a hand to her forehead. “I’ve had a bit too much tonight!”

“Aye, well, Christmas Eve, isn’t it?” He expertly steered her away from her erstwhile companion and back towards the road. “D’ye want me to call your mam or da for ye?”

“Oh, that would be a scandal, wouldn’t it? No, that’s all right. I’ll be all right in a minute. I just need to head … that way,” she said, pointing up the road to the north. Still looking confused, she tottered off, her high heels making clicking sounds on the pavement. 

Once they’d faded away, Harry turned back to the dark lump by the dustbin. Black ropes shot out of his wand, binding the man securely. “Hold on tight and don’t splinch yourself, Robert,” he said as he levitated the man and grabbed firm hold of his arm above the elbow. 

***  
Ginny strolled slowly down Diagon alley, heaving a sigh of happiness as she took in the holiday atmosphere. Garlands of holly had sprung from every storefront almost overnight, the dark green leaves and red berries perfectly contrasting with the white snow that seemed to dust every surface.

She slowed down in front of Quality Quidditch Supplies, catching sight of the new Quickzoom Mark 1 in the window. Started by a small Scottish outfit, she had to admit they had a catchy slogan: _Quickzoom Brooms. The best for the best, leave the rest to the rest._ She’d heard the Cannons had started using them and Ron had his eye on one because of it. She briefly entertained the thought of going into the shop and picking up a brochure to accidentally leave at the Burrow, but she decided against it. _Nah, he hasn’t been completely wretched this year._

She spent a long while in Slug and Jiggers, putting together a gift package of things she knew her mum was running low on before venturing back out. After the fragrant warmth of the apothecary, the cold air outside was like a slap in the face and she adjusted her scarf before heading over to Madame Malkin’s. 

On the way there, she passed the window of Gollendoof’s Glittering Gems, smiling to herself at the young wizard looking avidly in the window. He’d gotten so close that his warm breath was fogging up the glass and she raised an eyebrow, curious as to what could have captured his attention. Peering into the window, she saw a selection of men’s wristwatches.

Her eyes flicked to the signage, taking in the stylized sunburst with the letters H and M on top of it. “Who’s this, then?” she asked the young man, startling him.

“Oh, erm, it’s Hugo Magnussen,” he said, shoving his hands in the pockets of his outer robes. 

Ginny leaned in closer, peering at the watches on display. They all looked very grand with lots of gold and dials that all seemed to turn at different speeds with different purposes. “They are watches, right?”

“They’re the most amazing watches,” the young man breathed, leaning back in towards the window.

“Are they? What makes them so brilliant? I think they look a bit gaudy, myself.”

The young man stood up straight and took on an affronted expression. “Miss, these watches do more than tell the time.”

Ginny crossed her arms and looked at him. “All right then, sell me one.”

“Well, erm, okay …” He trailed off and looked at the watches on display again, clearly gathering his thoughts. “Right. You see that one there, the one in back corner?” Ginny leaned forward and nodded, privately thinking that the thing looked like it belonged on a pirate rather than a modern wizard. “That one is the HM Maginometer. It not only keeps the most accurate time in the world, it constantly monitors the magical energies in the area.”

“And why would one need to do that?”

“Well, it’s always good to know these things, isn’t it?” he countered, undaunted by her skepticism. “You can set up to five different alarms, all with a tap of your wand. It’s password protected so no one can mess with them, yeah?” Warming to his subject, his initial awkwardness fell away and he proceeded to tell Ginny in great detail all of the things these wonderful watches could do.

When he finally wound down, Ginny peered into the window again. “They do sound great, but do they have to look so …” she said, waving her hand at the mass of shiny gold watches.

“Not all of them, miss!” He pointed to a watch that had escaped her notice. It was just about the opposite of all the other watches on display. The case was a matte gunmetal gray and the face was deep midnight blue. The unobtrusive markers and hands were silver, matching the black leather strap perfectly. “That’s the Magnussen Tactical,” he said, reverence clear in his voice.

“It’s nice to know that this Magnussen bloke has some taste,” she said, amused at his affronted squawk. Looking down at her own rather plain watch, she paused for a moment. _Harry’s watch!_ She looked at the Magnussen Tactical again.

“Listen, I’ve got to go, but thank you so much for telling me about these …?”

“Cameron. You can call me Cam. Er, sorry, Cameron. Cam’s more … informal,” he said, homely face flooding with red.

“We won’t stand on formality then.” She held her hand out to him. “I’m Ginny,” she said when they shook. “Have a good Christmas! Maybe you’ll get lucky and someone will get you one of those!”

“Oh, mi—Ginny, that would be the best Christmas ever!”

Over the next few days, Ginny’s mind kept returning to the watch. Ever since she’d caught sight of Harry’s damaged watch, it had been in the back of her mind. She’d told herself that the next time she saw him, she’d just take it from him and get it repaired herself, but she hadn’t seen him since Bonfire Night.

_And before that … Hermione’s birthday in September._ She immediately felt like a traitor for not even realizing that she hadn’t even realized there had been nearly a two month gap in seeing Harry. He hadn’t even sent her an owl to invite her out for lunch as had been their habit before … _Well, I guess before I started seeing Matthew._

The thought of Matthew sent a faint rush of combined anger and disappointment through her and she shook her head, trying to focus on the patient record in front of her. _I bet you they’re really expensive. Gollendoof’s has been around for ages and they’re not cheap._

Even so, she was not exactly surprised to find herself at Gollendoof’s on Christmas Eve, surrounded by anxious, last-minute shopping husbands and boyfriends. She half-expected to see the young wizard Cameron behind the counter, still convinced that he had been a plant to draw attention to the watches, but that did not seem to be the case. Instead an older gentleman called Deacon helped her, trying to steer her towards one of the flashier models.

“Most young men like a bit of shine on their wrist, wouldn’t you say?” he said, laying what looked to Ginny like a gold nugget gone rogue on a black velvet pad. 

“Oh, well, the one this is for is more of the understated sort,” Ginny said, not failing to notice that the wizard in front of her was a walking billboard for the jewelry shop. As she spoke, she thought for a moment. _Have I ever seen Harry wear any jewelry? Other than his watch …_ Unbidden, she had a memory of Harry in her bed, dark hair tousled and eyes half-closed, his old watch the only thing on him.

“Ah, I see. How about this?” Deacon asked, setting another watch in front of her. Apparently his idea of _understated_ included diamonds.

“I was actually thinking of the Magnussen Tactical.” She pointed to it in the display case and she saw Deacon’s face fall just a little bit, but like a true salesman, he quickly recovered and set it on the pad with the other, gaudier models. Ginny stared at it, not paying a bit of attention to his sales patter. _Those others, those look like something Malfoy would wear and show off._ In her mind, she heard his whining drawl. _Look at what my father got me for my birthday._

“Do you gift wrap here in the shop?” she asked, cutting him off. 

“Yes, of course. I’ll have that taken care of for you.” He flagged down a junior salesman already loaded down with gifts and baubles, adding the watch to his collection. He turned back, giving her a somewhat appraising look. “Will you be opening a line of credit with us today?”

“Not today.” She set her purse on the display counter, the clink of Galleons audible inside. _I suppose Sirius won’t mind if I spend a bit of money on his godson._

***  
“Ron, did Harry say what time he’s coming?”

Ron shrugged and took a swig of his beer. “He didn’t say anything about it to me this morning. I guess he’ll be by when he’s off work?”

Ginny sighed. She’d given up trying to teach Ron about things like letting people know when to expect him years ago. “But when will that be?”

“Send him a Patronus if you’re so worried about him, yeah?”

“Thank you for your suggestion, Ronald,” Ginny said, turning away from her insensitive git of a brother. In the kitchen on her way to the back garden, she ran into George.

“Ginny! Happy Christmas,” he said expansively, making her instantly suspicious.

“What do you want?”

“What makes you think I want something?” he asked, giving her an “affronted brother” expression. “I’m simply wishing my baby sister a joyful holiday.”

Ginny softened and hugged him. “Happy Christmas, George.”

“Since I have you here, I wanted to know if you’d be interested in trying something out,” he said, favoring her with his most winning smile.

“What is that?” Shifting her weight onto her back foot, Ginny crossed her arms she looked at the bag George held out to her. It looked for all the world like a plain brown paper bag, but she knew that when it came to her prankster brother, looks were definitely deceiving.

“I’m calling it the Bag of Sensations. Go on, put your hand in.”

“What sort of sensations?”

George waggled his eyebrows at her and pushed the bag towards her. “Why don’t you stick your hand in and find out? It’s part of the Wonder Witch line.”

“Ugh, you’re disgusting. It’s Christmas! Let me by, I need to go out to the garden.”

“What for?” George asked, secreting the bag somewhere on his garishly-clad person.

“None of your business, all right?”

“No need for the strop!” George moved aside and she sidled past him. Her hand was on the knob of the door when he spoke again. “Harry’s not out in the garden, you know!”

“Sod off!” Trying not to look like she was storming off in a huff, Ginny stormed off in a huff, jerking open the kitchen door that opened out onto the garden. The cold air outside seared her lungs when she took a deep breath and she felt a little calmer. Focusing her magic, she concentrated on a happy memory, sending her hummingbird Patronus with a message. _Harry, where are you?_

***  
Harry trudged up the path to the garden gate at the Burrow, bottle of Chateauneuf in hand. _I don’t know how much good it’s going to do me now._ The windows of the usually cheery home were all dark and he was certain everyone was in bed. _Or maybe not everyone._

A single light shone in the kitchen and he checked his watch again, squinting through the cracks to wince at the time. _God, please don’t let that be Molly._ Reaching the back door, he took a deep breath, taking a moment to neaten his hair as much as he could and straighten his cloak just in case it was Molly Weasley waiting up for him.

Stepping into the kitchen, he breathed a sigh of relief when he was it was Ginny and not Molly at the table. “There you are,” she said, closing the booklet she had been looking at. “I was wondering if you were going to come.”

“Sorry. I, erm, meant to be here earlier, but …” He shrugged and dropped into the chair across from Ginny, setting the bottle of wine on the table between them.

“Oh, Chateauneuf,” she said, looking at the label. “Mum will like that.”

“I wanted to give it to her tonight and maybe do a bit of a toast, yeah?”

“Yeah. She’ll still like it tomorrow.” Ginny leaned forward, resting her chin in her hand and fixed him with a speculative look. “Now, what was it that kept you away from us tonight? Purple cows? Muggles having visions?”

Harry snorted and rolled his eyes. “If only! Nah, had to run up to Edinburgh and snatch a man off the street,” he said, watching as Ginny arched an eyebrow.

“Sounds serious. What did he do?”

“Oh, God, this is going to sound terrible.” Harry’s head fell back and he stared at the ceiling. “I don’t even know. I didn’t even ask. Jackson said, ‘Oi, you Potter get your arse up to Edinburgh and bring us Robert Langnecker,’ and I said, ‘Aye sir, I’ll get right up there and do that.” He shook his head and looked at Ginny again. “I don’t know that I particularly cared that he’d done anything to be taken by me.”

“Oh, Harry,” Ginny said, her face full of concern. Harry felt flooded with shame and his face grew hot. She reached out and took his hands in hers, squeezing them tight. “What are they doing to you?”

His heart stuttered as her looked at her, her face so full of care and worry for him and he had a very different sensation of warmth. “They’re making the best use of Harry Potter is what they’re doing. Jackson told me I should think about my ‘stellar career’.”

Ginny opened her mouth as if she were about to say something and then closed it. “I’m a terrible hostess. Can I get you anything to drink? I think there’s still some spiced cider.”

“That would be brilliant. It was bloody cold in that alley.” Harry watched as she got up and put together a mug of spiced cider for him. The package he had for her seemed to weigh heavier in his cloak pocket. “So, what’s new with you? Been a while since I’ve seen you.” He glanced down at the table, his heart clenching at the booklet laying there. _UCSF_ was prominent on the cover.

“Bonfire night, remember?” Ginny set a steaming mug of cider in front of him and he drank, burning his tongue on the hot liquid. She sat back down and picked up the colorful booklet. “I heard back. I got accepted.”

Even though he’d been expecting the news, it still stung to hear and he willed himself to smile. “That’s great, Gin! They’ll be lucky to have you!”

Her own smile looked relieved and he had another rush of shame that she should measure her own reactions against his. “I hope so,” she said and her expression turned introspective. “I hope I’m not making a huge mistake.”

“Hey, it’s Christmas, yeah? Let’s not worry about mistakes or careers right now, all right?” He reached into his cloak pocket and was about to take out the package when she held up her hand.

“Wait. I have a little something something for you,” she said, jumping out of her chair. Harry sat, listening to the thump of her sock-clad feet on the stairs up to her old bedroom, expertly avoiding the squeaky fifth step. A moment later, she was back in the kitchen, hiding something behind her back. Her cheeks were pink and Harry wanted to kiss her. “On three, all right?”

“All right,” he agreed. “One. Two. Two-and-a-half …”

“Three!” Ginny said and they both set their packages on the table. Both of them sported the same distinctive gold wrapping and white ribbon from Gollendoof’s and they both fell silent, staring at the boxes before looking at each other.

“Well,” Harry said, clearing his throat. “Um, you first?” He watched as she picked up the long, narrow package and studied it before carefully untying the ribbon and lifting off the top of the box.

“Oh, Harry. You really shouldn’t have,” she said after an endless moment. She looked at him, her brown eyes practically glowing as she took the diamond bracelet out of the box. 

“Erm, d’you like it?” he asked, his heart starting to beat once more.

“I love it, but Harry! You shouldn’t be spending that sort of money on me,” she scolded, even as she was wrapping the bracelet around her wrist and fastening the clasp. The diamonds glinted in the low light, making her wrist look even more delicate.

“I saw it and I wanted you to have it.” He flicked his finger against the UCSF booklet. “Something to remember me by.”

Ginny shook her head and reached across the table, cupping his cheek with one hand. “As if I could ever forget you.” Harry closed his eyes and leaned into her touch, nearly started when she spoke again. “Your turn.”

Opening his eyes, he saw Ginny looking at him with sparkling eyes as she held out the other Gollendoof’s gold box. “Gin, you know I’m not worth whatever is in here,” he said, pulling on one end of the white ribbon.

“You let me be the judge of what you’re worth,” she said with such an arch look that Harry had to chuckle. 

Inside the gold box was another box, this one white with an embossed silver logo of a sunburst with a stylized H and M over it and Harry sucked in a breath. “Oh my God, Gin.”

“Maybe I just reused the box. Go on,” she said, making shooing motions at him, the bracelet on her wrist shifting with the movement.

Shaking his head, he opened the inner box and took out the Magnussen Tactical watch. “Are you serious?”

“Yes.”

“D’you know how much these cost?”

“Well, I paid for it, didn’t I?” She looked incredibly pleased with herself as she reached for it, undoing the buckle on the butter-soft matte black leather band. “Let’s see it on you.”

Feeling as if he were in a strange dream, he took off his old watch, the shattered crystal seeming to damn him, and held out his wrist, grinning as Ginny fastened the new one in place. “There,” she said, holding out her hand. “Give me the old one. I’ll take it to get it fixed. There’s a shop down the road from my flat.”

“I can—” Harry protested, but Ginny cut him off.

“Harry, it’s been broken at least since Bonfire night and you haven’t gotten it fixed. Mum will go spare if she sees it’s broken and you know it.”

Harry handed her the watch that had been her late uncle’s, acknowledging defeat. “Well, she’d see it and try magic and then when it didn’t work, she’d ask why and I’d have to tell her that it was from a curse and then all hell would break loose.”

“Exactly. I’m doing you a huge favor and don’t you forget it.” Ginny tucked the old watch into her trouser pocket.

Harry looked down at the beautiful new watch, knowing that it was exactly suited to him. He reached out, stroking her cheekbone with his thumb. “As if I could ever forget you.”


End file.
